Sri Lanka Defeats Tamil Tigers but Restricts Outside Aid

Christian Science Monitor The former theater of war in northeastern Sri Lanka has been out of bounds for aid workers for months, with the Sri Lankan government only granting sporadic access to the International Committee of the Red Cross [which has] permission to supply food aid and to evacuate the injured, reports the Christian Science Monitor .  In recent months, as the military aggressively went after the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam determined to crush the three-decade-old insurgency, this has largely been a war without witness. Journalists, independent observers, and aid groups have been persistently denied access to the region. Even now, with the government having announced victory against the rebels this week, the region still remains inaccessible According to United Nations estimates, more than 7,000 people have been killed since January alone, and aid groups are pressing for unfettered access to provide aid to 265,000 people, including 80,000 children.